Nephrogenic Fibrosing Dermopathy/Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis: Report of a New Case With Literature Review

Nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy (NFD) is a fibrosing condition of the skin that is being described increasingly in patients with renal diseases, many of whom are on dialysis therapy or have undergone renal transplantation. Its etiopathology is unknown, and no standard therapy currently exists. We describe a patient with NFD for whom histopathologic studies indicated that the fibrotic process affected subcutaneous tissue, striated muscles, diaphragm, pleura, pericardium, great vessels of the heart, left ventricle and septum, and tunica albuginea in addition to the dermis. Fibroblast-like cells positive for CD34 and CD45RO and scattered CD68-positive cells were found in affected tissues. The presentation of our case is unusual in that the disease process started in the lower abdomen and upper extremities and involved the upper extremities to a greater extent than the lower extremities. Our findings indicate that the fibrosis associated with NFD can extend beyond dermis and, as part of a systemic fibrosing disorder, can involve subcutaneous tissues, striated muscles, diaphragm, pleura, pericardium, and myocardium. We therefore suggest that “nephrogenic systemic fibrosis” would be a more appropriate term for this disease entity.

Index words:  Dialysis , end-stage renal disease (ESRD) , fibrosis , nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy (NFD) , systemic fibrosis